“The Coalition for Healthcare Communication defends the right of health professionals and consumers to receive truthful information regarding pharmaceuticals and medical products, as safeguarded by the Constitution of the United States. Founded in 1991 . . . the Coalition's role is first, to defend the rights of medical professionals and consumers to receive appropriate health care information, and second, to act to prevent or reverse actions interfering with the free flow of healthcare information.”

The group and the associated Coalition for Healthcare Communication Foundation is a 501(c)(6) organization whose mailing address is listed at the Pharmaceutical Advertising Council, Inc. in Cos Cob, CT. With offices in New York City and Washington, DC, the group fights to maintain direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising and the drug industry’s role in providing continuing medical education (CME). CHC’s 2004 annual report, authored by executive director John Kamp, claims it successfully fought the Accreditation Council on Continuing Medical Education (ACCME)’s “confusing conflict of interest clause, which was read by some to essentially bar anyone engaged by a pharmaceutical or other healthcare company from participating in CME sponsored by those companies. . . In response to widespread concerns of the Coalition and other stakeholder organizations, the ACCME has actively worked to clarify the intent of the changes, and to insure that the rules do not have the unintended effect of limiting speakers and drug company support for CME.”